Citigroup asks US employees to return to work from March 21 – memo

A view of the exterior of Citibank’s corporate headquarters in New York, New York, U.S. May 20, 2015. REUTERS/Mike Segar

Feb 23 (Reuters) – Citigroup Inc (CN) has asked vaccinated employees at all U.S. sites to begin returning to the office from the week of March 21, according to an internal memo published by Reuters on Wednesday.

Staff will work from the office at least two days a week, the memo says.

“While COVID-19 will never completely go away, we are seeing some promising developments,” Citi human resources manager Sara Wechter said in the memo.

The move builds on Citi’s previous efforts to rein power in the United States, which began last September. Last year, the bank’s staff returned to its New York headquarters office and other offices in the tri-state area, among other places.

The ruling also highlights a growing trend of employers and politicians dealing with the virus as part of everyday life. Earlier this month, officials in several states, including New York, New Jersey and California, relaxed mask mandates.

Banks and investment firms on Wall Street have been more proactive than other sectors in requiring employees to return to their offices.

Citigroup said in January that unvaccinated staff would be placed on unpaid leave and terminated at the end of the month unless granted an exemption. By the end of January, about 99% of the bank’s US employees had complied with the vaccination mandate.

Reporting by Niket Nishant in Bengaluru and David Henry in New York; Editing by Aditya Soni

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